A Level Classical Civilisation - Politics of the Late Republic: Background of the Late Republic Key Terms

patricians

families whose ancestry could be traced to the early days of Rome, when they formed a ruling aristocratic group from whom Romulus was said to have chosen the first hundred senators.

plebeians (plebs)

Roman citizens who were not patrician. Originally a 'lower' order, the plebeians gained significant wealth and nobility as a result of an ongoing 'Conflict of the Orders' from the 5th to the 3rd centuries BC

equites

a rank in the Roman class system which grew in wealth and status through occupations in commerce and finance

res publica

literally meaning 'public affairs'; this was the term in Latin that the Romans used to refer to the Republican constitution that had replaced the monarchy

Senatus Populsque Romanus (SPQR)

the Roman state: 'the Senate and the People of Rome'

senate

a deliberative assembly central to the government of the Roman Republic

cursus honorem

a system of political offices in the senate in Rome, elected annually

consul

one of the two leading senators who presided over the senate

imperium

the power invested in a consul giving him the military command of the state army

praetor

second in authority to the consuls and presiding over the law courts in Rome

aedile

an optional magistracy; responsible for the provision of games and public services in Rome

quaestor

the first rung on the ladder of offices; responsible for the state treasury

tribune of the plebs

ten officials elected from the plebeian order to act as a check on the senate and the cursus honorum in Rome

tribal assembly

the body of Roman citizens organised into the traditional thirty-five 'tribes' of Rome

censor

an official elected for 18 months, responsible for the census and supervising public morality

centuriate assembly

the body of Roman citizens organised into 193 voting 'centuries'

dictator

a position of state established in periods of military crisis and awarded to one man by the consuls for 6 months only

governor

a senator selected from those who had previously served as praetors or consuls, responsible for the smooth running, safety and taxation of a Roman province

nobiles

senatorial families distinguished by the inclusion of a consul in their ancestry

optimates

a group of aristocratic senatorial families concerned to preserve the political and social status quo

boni

men considered to be ideal statesmen; well educated, traditional, patriotic and experienced in politics

populares

noble senatorial families that aimed to secure power through appealing to the people

patron

a man of significant social standing able to offer resources (financial, legal or simply food) to his clients in return for loyalty

clients

citizens who were bound by loyalty to a wealthy patron to support him in all his public interests (e.g. in elections) in return for support and resources

novus homo

literally, 'new man', one who had not only managed to break into the ranks of the senate, but even to become consul, with no history of the consulship (or sometimes even senatorial rank) in his family lineage

amicitia

a system of family alliances established to consolidate and further the success of influential Romans

imicitia

an opposite system to amicitia, where individual disagreements could extend into significant hostility between families